


Intelligence.

by BlueTeamSucks



Series: What's the A Stand For? [4]
Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: AI AU, M/M, Mother of Invention, Project Freelancer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-01
Updated: 2014-09-01
Packaged: 2018-02-15 18:41:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2239296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueTeamSucks/pseuds/BlueTeamSucks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tucker could feel himself getting dizzy. His head spun and he could barely think straight from the loss of blood. His chest burned and his head ached as Wash panicked. The AI had been able to quickly recover from the betrayal, unlike Tucker.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Intelligence.

Tucker could feel himself getting dizzy. His head spun and he could barely think straight from the loss of blood. His chest burned and his head ached as Wash panicked. The AI had been able to quickly recover from the betrayal, unlike Tucker.

If help didn't come soon, then Tucker would die on some strange planet after being shot by one of his best friends. His only comfort was that Wash was with him. Wash would be able to survive even when Tucker would die.

 _"Don't think that. Don't you fucking dare,"_ Wash growled.

Tucker gave him a weak shrug. _"It's true, isn't it? Nobody will even worry if we take this long. When 479er realizes that something is wrong, it will be hours too late."_

 _"Stop moving, you're making it worse."_ Wash avoided the truth. Tucker stayed silent, a sick feeling in his stomach from knowing that he was correct. For once in his life, Tucker didn't want to be right.

Tucker opened his eyes and glanced around him. Doc hadn't left anything behind. Tucker briefly wondered why Doc had chosen to leave Project Freelancer. Sure, it was demanding and competitive, but it wasn't worth it to kill your friend over. At least according to Tucker.

 _"Maybe him and Wyoming know something that we don't,"_ Wash said. Tucker knew that he was trying to distract them both from what was really going on.

Tucker indulged him. _"Maybe. What do you think it could be?"_

 _"They could know what caused Caboose and Maine to start acting different."_ Wash started pacing on the dead grass in front of Tucker.

 _"What if they made Caboose and Maine be that way?"_ Tucker suggested. His thoughts turned to Caboose. Tucker hated to admit it, but he would miss the big, dumb, idiot and his stupid AI. Although, he would probably miss Church the most. Tucker wondered if Church would miss him.

Wash glared at him. _"Stop that."_

 _"Are you going to miss me?"_ Tucker thought the question before he could filter it out.

Wash was silent for a moment, then nodded slowly. _"You're all that I can remember. I love you. If you die, I want to die."_

Before Tucker could protest, Wash flooded him with every single happy memory of him and David together. The time they had a picnic at midnight. The time they had a water fight on a burning hot day. The time they stayed up all night and told each other funny stories. Tucker could remember every vivid detail. He could practically feel David's warm hand in his and their lips pressed together.

Gasping as he felt the memories start to fade away, Tucker smiled gently at Wash. _"Thank you. Are you okay?"_

Wash didn't say anything. He started to go through some more of Tucker's good memories. Tucker could smell his mom's fresh chocolate chip cookies in the air and he felt his younger brother tugging on the cuff of his sleeve. A large dog barked in the background and his mother was talking on their faded yellow cord phone. He couldn't figure out who she was talking to though, their conversation wasn't how he had remembered it.

"He's not moving. Washington? Who shot him?" Tucker's mother was panicked, but her expression was light and cheerful.

"He's losing a lot of blood! Simmons, use your healing unit!" Wash's stressed voice pulled Tucker out of the memory. Instead of staring at the light blue walls of his childhood home, Tucker was looking at the vast, deep blue sky. Not a single cloud was in sight. The planet's two suns were directly above them, looking like they were just about to crash together. Tucker felt like he could reach out and grab one.

Grif, Sarge, and Simmons all looked down at him, worry etched into their faces. They were all in armor, but their helmets were off. It took Tucker a moment to realize that his helmet was gone as well. He opened his mouth, wincing at the taste of blood. "What the fuck just happened?"

The other Freelancers relaxed slightly. Simmons helped Tucker sit up so that he was leaning against a rock. "We came to get you and Doc. Niner said that she hadn't seen you, so we started to look for you guys. We found you bleeding on the ground while Wash was freaking out. Doc is nowhere in sight."

Tucker blanched as he looked down at his chest. The top half of his armor was gone too and his bodysuit had been pulled down to reveal the crudely bandaged bullet wound. "Doc is gone? Good. Fuck him."

"Tucker, where is he? We have some really bad news for him." Simmons looked completely serious. Tucker wondered what was going on to have all three of them come here.

"Who do you think shot me, dumbass? There's nobody else on this entire fucking planet! Asshole." Tucker gave Sarge a small smile. "Guess I found the traitor, huh?"

Sarge's expression turned to confusion. "But... You were right the first time. Caboose is the traitor, he killed Donut and stole Carolina."

Wash and Tucker both froze in shock. Donut, the cheerful, impossibly strong, and kind guy was dead? And he was killed by one of the most gentle people they knew? Tucker took a minute to recover.

Too tired to mentally talk to Wash, Tucker managed to mutter, "I guess we're both wrong."

"You aren't making any sense," Grif said, sounding annoyed.

"Tucker and I were thinking that Doc had made Caboose and Maine upset somehow. But if Caboose killed Donut, then I don't think Doc would do that," Wash explained for Tucker, so that he wouldn't need to strain himself. Simmons's healing unit was still working on his chest.

Simmons shrugged. "If Doc was crazy enough to try to kill you, maybe he would be willing to let Donut die too."

Feeling himself start to regain energy as he healed, Tucker managed to shake his head quickly. "Before he left, Doc told me how much he loved Donut. He said that he loved him more than I..." Tucker trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence. Everyone just stared at Tucker blankly until he sighed in resignation. "He said that he loved Donut more than I love my boyfriend."

"What?" Grif looked over at Tucker in disbelief.

Simmons looked just as shocked. "Who...?"

 _"You okay?"_ Tucker checked to make sure that Wash was okay with their relationship being outed so suddenly.

Wash shrugged. _"Your choice. I'm fine with it as long as you are."_

"Washington," Tucker answered.

There was a long silence. York, South, and CT all stared at Wash while Simmons, Grif, and Sarge stared open-mouthed at Tucker. Wash and Tucker were both internally panicking, but somehow managed to keep straight faces.

Sarge was, surprisingly, the first to say something. "Well, that's weird."

"Why is that not the first time that someone's told us that they're doing their AI?" Simmons shook his head, then shrugged at Grif.

"Who the fuck cares?" Grif scoffed. Then, to the surprise of everyone, he grabbed Simmons by the chest plate and pulled him into a kiss. Simmons seemed to struggle for a moment, then he practically melted against Grif.

Eventually, they both had to breath. Simmons's cheeks were flushed and he seemed flustered. Grif just acted like he did that everyday. Grif looked over at the wide-eyed Sarge and Tucker. "What? I thought that we were outing weird relationships."

"Whatever, dirtbag. Enough mushy crap, we need to get back to the Mother." Sarge glared at Grif like he would any other day. Tucker had a sneaking suspicion that Sarge had already known about Simmons's and Grif's relationship. The four had always been close.

 _"Three,"_ Wash corrected him sadly. Tucker had almost forgotten that Donut was dead. A shudder ran along his spine.

"Right. Tucker, can you stand yet?" Simmons turned to Tucker, his cheeks still pink.

Tucker shifted and attempted to get up. Pain shot through him and he could barely breath for a second. His vision blurred and narrowed to a point. Spot flashed before his eyes.

"Whoa! He's going to pass out," Wash warned them just as Tucker's feet slipped out from underneath him.

Sarge managed to catch him before he hit the ground. Tucker moaned as he was moved back to the ground. "I guess that answers that question. Do we need to carry him?"

"Just... Just give me a second. I'll be able to walk in a minute," Tucker panted out.

Grif snorted. "Yeah, fuck that. We'll be here forever. Simmons, help me get him up."

Tucker wasn't able to protest as Simmons and Grif shrugged his arms over their shoulders, so that he was in the middle of them. He guessed from the clanking behind them that Sarge was carrying his armor. Wash moved to his right shoulder. Tucker could barely feel his constant worrying over the pain of being dragged.

They hurriedly pulled him back to the ship. Niner stood in the doorway, practically biting her nails. She stared as Simmons and Grif carried Tucker onboard and pushed him into a seat. "Where's Doc?"

"Not coming," Tucker groaned out.

479er gave them a curt nod just before she shut the back door. "Taking off in two. Be strapped in. The Mother of Invention has been calling us. We need to be quiet as we board her, so not too much chatter back here."

They all made noises of understanding, except Tucker, who couldn't bring himself to make a sound. Simmons's healing unit was still mending his chest up. He doubted if it was even working. Actually, he was feeling really dizzy.

 _"It's working. You would be in immense pain if I hadn't already given you an honestly dangerous amount of morphine. It should be wearing off soon, so brace yourself,"_ Wash said.

No wonder he hadn't noticed that his chest was healing. _"Noted. Thanks for the warning. And the drugs, I guess."_

Wash shrugged. _"It was York's idea. He said that he had learned from experience that chest wounds and healing units are not pretty. He almost gave Simmons a drug overdose, he was so freaked out."_

Tucker snorted weakly. _"I remember that. Simmons was all loopy afterwards, Grif almost pissed himself from laughing too hard. It was about a month before I got you."_

 _"Do you ever... Miss having only one voice in your head?"_ Wash asked, obviously trying to be careful about his wording.

 _"It gets a little crowded sometimes, but no. I like having you in my head. It could've been way worse. I almost got Wyoming. Then it would be me that's running away right now and Doc that's bleeding in this chair."_ Tucker shuddered at the thought. _"Why? Do you ever miss having your own thoughts?"_

Wash slowly shook his head. _"I don't think I've ever had my own thoughts. The only thing I can remember is waking up with you. Although, I almost feel as if I'm forgetting something important. Something bad. I just can't remember it, it's so frustrating,"_ Wash growled in irritation.

Tucker suddenly felt concern for his AI. He sounded like he was upset and in pain. _"Is there anything that I can do to help?"_

 _"No. I just need to think for a minute. Let me know if I accidentally hurt you,"_ Wash said.

Tucker raised an eyebrow at that. He braced himself as Wash started sifting through a couple of memories. They weren't good memories. They were the kind of memories that kept you up at night, the kind that you pushed away and tried to never think about again.

 _"Sorry! Sorry!"_ Wash backed off and apologized when Tucker flinched.

 _"Nah, it's not you. The morphine is just starting to wear off,"_ Tucker lied. He didn't want Wash to worry about him.

Wash rolled his eyes in annoyance. _"You do realize that I know when you're lying, right?"_

 _"I know. I'm alright."_ Tucker gripped the armrests tightly as pain shot through his chest. _"Okay, but seriously, this fucking hurts."_

 _"You're almost done. I shouldn't give you anymore morphine, sorry."_ Wash sounded sympathetic as he stared at Tucker.

Tucker gave Wash a small smile. _"What? No more drugs? That's like fucking torture, man."_

 _"Torture?"_ Wash stilled, his mind racing. Tucker groaned in pain at the sudden rush of thoughts and memories.

Simmons mistook the groan as a sign that his healing unit was working. "Your chest is almost done healing up. Once we dock, you need to go to the med bay for a more permanent solution. The unit can only go so far."

"Thanks, I will." Tucker gave him a pained smile, trying to seem alright. Wash was still silent, but his thoughts had calmed down a little. He seemed to be concentrating on one thing.

479er looked into the back. "We're almost there, so quiet down. Command isn't calling me back, I think something's wrong. Hang on for a little while longer, Tucker."

 _"Wash, you there? Niner says that something has happened on the Mother. We'll be there soon."_ Tucker bit his lip as he waited for Wash to say something.

It took him a minute, but Wash responded. _"I'm fine. Ask Sarge if he'll help you get your armor back on. I have a bad feeling about this."_

"Sarge? Do you mind helping me with my armor? Wash is worried," Tucker whispered to Sarge, who was fiddling with Tucker's chest piece.

Sarge looked up and nodded at Tucker. "CT is too. We'll have to be quiet, don't want Niner yelling at us again."

It took them a minute and some help from Simmons and Grif, but Tucker managed to get dressed before they reached the Mother of Invention. It wasn't exactly the most comfortable outfit, considering that his chest was still bleeding slightly, but it was still better than being completely unprotected. Tucker didn't really know what he needed protecting from. He still couldn't believe that Caboose could be a danger to them.

 _"He broke your hand, you know that, right?"_ Wash gave him a concerned glance from his spot on Tucker's shoulder.

Tucker shook his head. _"He's broken my bones before. Fuck, he's killed people before. But not our friends. I still can barely believe that Donut is dead."_

_"You used to have a crush on him, right?"_

Tucker didn't respond to that. He stared out the window and watched as they landed. Nobody else was in sight, not even a single guard. Just as Tucker was about to voice his concerns, red lights started flashing throughout the room.

All of them jumped out of their seats, despite 479er's protests. Wash kept warning Tucker about his chest, but Tucker just brushed him off.

"Caboose must be somewhere in here. Or Doc," Sarge whispered to the group. They all craned their necks and hurriedly set their trackers.

"Guys, I'm picking up movement in the training room," CT announced as quietly as she could. They started rushing to the room, hoping to find Caboose there. It would be easy to take him out in a place that they knew so well.

"Should we split up?" Simmons suggested once they reached the viewing room.

That earned him looks from his other team members. Sarge and Tucker both exclaimed, "Fuck, no!"

Grif slowly shook his head. "Simmons, if horror movies and cartoons have ever taught me anything, it's that you never _ever_ split up when there's a bad guy around."

"Alright, alright, I get your point. Where do you think Sister is?" Simmons looked over his shoulder as if he would find her there.

Tucker glanced over his own shoulder and looked down into the training room. His stomach churned when he saw a pool of blood on the ground. As Grif and Simmons argued about where to look, Tucker walked up to the window and stared down at the scene. Blood was sprayed against one of the walls and Sister was laying on the ground, motionless. A missile pod lay nearby, also covered in blood.

"I think I found her," Tucker mumbled weakly. His chest ached and not just from the bullet.

Grif, Sarge, and Simmons looked where Tucker was standing, then down into the training room. Simmons squeaked and leaned against Sarge for support. Sarge didn't say anything, he just looked away from the gruesome sight.

"Fuck!" Grif swore loudly and pushed past Tucker and raced away. Simmons moved to follow, but Tucker grabbed his wrist and shook his head in a warning.

They all watched from above as Grif burst into the training room and ran to his sister's body. He cradled her head in his lap and his shoulders shook as sobs racked his body.

Tucker frowned to himself. Something was wrong with the scene. It was too bloody for a normal death. This was theatrical. This was a set up. A shadow in the corner of the training room shifted.

"Grif! Get out of there!" Tucker yelled out a warning.

Grif jumped to his feet just in time for Caboose to come running at him with a huge rifle with a large, curved blade on it. Chills ran down Tucker's spine as an explosion threw Grif into the air.

"Dexter, no!" Simmons jerked out of Tucker's grip and tried to run out of the room. Sarge caught him around the waist and pulled him away from the door.

"You can't do anything. You can't do anything when Caboose has that thing. You'll only get yourself hurt, you can't do anything." Sarge's voice cracked with emotion as he held Simmons down, away from the windows.

Tucker held his breath as the dust and rubble cleared away. He could see Grif's body on top of Sister's. Caboose was staring up directly at him as he reloaded his weapon. Maine, Caboose's huge AI, drifted above his shoulder. Even from the viewing room, Tucker could hear his deep, raspy growl. Three more AI appeared next to Maine and followed Caboose's gaze. Tucker recognized the cyan light of Carolina and the purple light of the twin AI, South and North.

"He probably has their armor enhancements. Agent Caboose has the two domed shields and the speed unit in addition to his super strength," Wash told him in a hushed tone.

"So basically, we're fucked."

"Pretty much."

Sarge interrupted their conversation. "We need to find The Director. He'll know what to do."

"We need to help Dexter! He's hurt!" Simmons wailed from Sarge's arms.

Sarge and Tucker both looked at him sadly. Sarge propped Simmons up against the wall. "Son, Dexter is dead. Caboose killed him and his sister. I'm sorry, I know that you two were..."

"Then we need to kill Caboose," Simmons said, his voice full of pain. Tucker stared at him in shock. Usually Simmons felt bad about killing criminals. Tucker couldn't imagine why he would want to kill a close friend, even if he had gone insane. Then again, if Caboose had killed Wash, he would never be able to forgive him.

"You can't kill him. I've tried already. All those AI and enchantments make it too hard. And to top it off, he managed to get his hands on a brute shot. I didn't even know that we had those onboard." Church walked into the room, making them all jump. His helmet was missing and his pale skin was covered in blood. Texas watched from his shoulder.

Simmons crossed his arms stubbornly. "Then throw a grenade at him."

"He'll just use the shields to bounce it back at you. He's gotten smarter with all of those AI. We have no chance, our best option is to set up a good defense and send out a distress signal," Texas said.

"I say that we trap him in the training room and get him there. We have the numbers to do it," Simmons insisted, not willing to back off.

Wash suddenly spoke up. "Uhhh... He's not in the training room anymore."

They all turned to the closest window. Wash was right, there was no sign of Caboose anywhere except for a trail of blood.

"Dammit! You let him get away, you fucking idiots. That's on you." Texas pointed at Tucker.

Wash immediately came to Tucker's defense. "Hey, you weren't watching him either. You never said it was our job. Besides, he would've moved even if we were staring at him."

"You don't know that. It's still your fault," Tex snapped at Wash.

Tucker opened his mouth to tell them both to shut the fuck up, but was cut off but an explosion that knocked him to the ground. Church dove for cover and pulled Simmons down with him. Sarge wasn't as lucky and saw the same fate as Grif.

Choking back a cry, Tucker watched as Sarge fell to the ground. CT panicked on his chest as Caboose bent over him, reaching for the back of his neck. "Don't... Touch her," Sarge managed to call out as he raised his right arm to fire his shotgun one last time, shooting Caboose in the stomach.

Caboose jolted back, away from Sarge's body and out of the room. Tucker coughed a couple of times to clear the dust out of his throat. He could taste the blood in his mouth.

"Sarge? Sarge, please wake up!" CT touched his visor, her brown light reflecting on the gold of his helmet.

"Tucker, I think Simmons is dead," Church rasped out.

Tucker turned around and realized that he was sitting in a pool of blood. His armor was stained with it and Tucker knew that he would always remember the crimson against aqua. It was barely even visible against Simmons's maroon armor.

Tucker could feel Simmons's healing unit, suddenly heavy on his chest. If he had only decided to return it. If only he could've toughed out the bullet wound, then at least one more of his friends would be alive.

He looked up at Church. His friend's face was even paler than usual and his dark hair was matted with blood. He stared at Tucker with a tired expression. "You know what, Tucker?"

"What?"

"I fuckin' hate this job."


End file.
